Kirby 64 in Another Dimension
by skyguys05
Summary: Following Corrupt Hyness's defeat in Another Dimension, Kirby and friends encounter The Three Mage-Sisters. Enraged at the condition of their (Fell) Officiant of Doom, they viciously challenge Kirby and his friends for one last duel. Kirby doesn't want to fight however, but they won't take no for an answer…


In the far corners of another dimension, an ongoing battle just concluded on the parallel Divine Terminus altar. In the middle of the arena, there is a floating mage that is clothed in dark blue. In addition, there are three dolls circling the lone mage in perfect sync. The floating mage looked worse to wear. His robes were tattered, covered with dirt and he is wobbling in the air.

_"_Goppoko!? Vun rigga! J-j-jaitty_..."_ Corrupt Hyness cried out before falling to the ground. The three dolls vanished in midair as he landed.

On the other side of the altar, five heroes were panting after the fight. Yet they were happy at their victory.

The tallest creature is a large blue-skinned penguin-like creature with a yellow mouth is dressed in royal, red finery, with his peace sign emblem ingrained on the back of his robe. His round red cap has a golden rim and a white ball at the top matches his robe. He has blue flipper-like hands are covered by a pair of yellow mittens. He also has a red and yellow stripe pattern obi across his waist. The weapon he is wielding is a large star-studded hammer that's slightly larger in length than his own body. Yet he can swing the hammer at ease.

Next to him is a young girl who is wearing a long-sleeve, bright green collared smock and a red beret that covers most of her hair which is dark brown in color. A single fringe of hair is on the left side of her forehead. She also wears a gray skirt, blue socks and large brown shoes with yellow laces. Her trusty paintbrush has multi-colored paint on its tip.

Floating above the girl is a fairy with dark blue eyes and rosy cheeks. She has light pink, messy shoulder-length hair with a red ribbon in it. She wears a long-sleeved crimson dress with two golden buttons and a frilly white collar, and a pair of small beige shoes. Her pair of wings is cyan in color and her legs are short and stubby. She carries a clear crystal in her hands that is radiating a faint, mystical light.

Now we have a waddle dee standing on the other side of the large penguin, not just any waddle dee however. This waddle dee is reddish-orange in color instead of plain orange. His most noticeable feature is the blue bandana he wears on top of his head. His spear has a red strap tied to part of the wood that is touching the spearhead.

Lastly, there is a pink specimen who is standing in front of the penguin. His appearance is similar to the waddle dee but he is way more round and obviously a different color. He holds a sword that is perfect for his size and is wearing a green hat with a yellow rim and ball on it.

"I-is it over? Did we win?" Ribbon spoke to break the silence that followed after the battle.

Kirby walked over to Hyness's limp body and examined it, much to the fear of everyone else present, especially Ribbon.

"He's not moving anymore. We won Ribbon, poyo." Kirby said as he turned back to his group of friends with a smile.

"Thank goodness." Adeleine said with a huge sigh of relief. "After going through all these dimensional rifts with everyone else, I'm relieved that it was just Hyness here all by himself."

"I agree Ado." Bandana Dee nodded. "Sure Hyness was more powerful than the last time we fought but he was no match to the five of us!"

"So what do we do now? Do we just leave this place and the crazy officiant or what? And what will Kirby do with all those Friend Hearts we've gathered on our way here?" King Dedede questioned.

"Good question." Adeleine admitted before fully turning to the king with a slight smirk. "…One of your good questions, I'd say." Ribbon chuckled alongside her.

King Dedede twitched his eye angrily. "What's that supposed to mean, girlie!?"

"Umm, she doesn't mean anything bad, Great King." Bandana Dee comforted in an effort to calm him down.

"Well, I don't know about that! Your girlie friend here likes to tease me each time I say something."

"W-w-well, Ado just likes to have fun with her friends…" he stuttered, unable to come up with a proper reply to ease the king's frustrations. In truth, he enjoys Adeleine's constant teasing of King Dedede. In fact, he enjoys hanging out with Adeleine in general but that's another topic. But he'd never admit the first fact to His Majesty or else he may not live to tell the tale.

"I mean, BanDee's not wrong about that." She winked at waddle dee. "It's not that hard to have fun with you King Dedede."

Dedede could only grumble even more as Adeleine and Ribbon continued giggling. Even Bandana Dee couldn't help but snicker ever so slightly behind Dedede.

While the others were caught in their antics, Kirby reflected upon Dedede's question. It's true that they defeated Hyness again but that was after he was freed from the dark Jamba Heart that he most likely used to summon all the rifts. In addition, they can't just leave the world the way it is. The answers to purifying the world must be in the Friend Hearts but they haven't reacted in any scenario since he and the other Star Allies collected them, which includes using them on Hyness. As Kirby became lost in his thoughts, a loud thunderous voice rang out into everyone's ears.

"LORD HYNESS!" a frantic voice shouted.

"That voice poyo… it's Zan!?" Kirby gasped in complete surprise. The other four stopped their conversation and looked around the area with a similar surprise look.

Indeed, Zan Partizanne, the Lightning General, rushed over to the corrupted altar. Somehow, the General flat out didn't see Kirby and the group despite them coming in her view as she rapidly descended. Her focus is on Hyness's health and she'd die to keep him safe, despite all the harsh treatment he gives her.

She has disembodied hands and wears a beret with a bat-like symbol in front of it. Her uniform and beret are completely white with beige lining, similar to an angel. Her skin is unnaturally black and her eyes are red. Despite this look, she retains her yellow markings on her face and hair.

"Wha- What is this!? I merely sought Lord Hyness, who was said to have been swallowed into the void. And now… I find myself at the precipice of another dimension!" she cried out and clenched her fists.

"It looks like she hasn't seen us yet!" Dedede said in a loud tone that's enough for the entire dimension to hear. The other four glared at him, causing the king to cower from their gazes.

"Wait a minute…" Zan turned around rapidly and met the gaze of the group standing at a distance from them. Her eyes immediately darted towards Kirby. "That stubby pink ball… is that you!?"

Kirby waved at the general. "Hi Zan, poyo." She only grunted at him in reply, believing that he was taunting her. In reality, Kirby just wanted to make amends and a new friend.

"Francisca! Flamberge! Get over here!" she commanded. Almost immediately the other two mage sisters flew to Zan's side but their focus was on Hyness.

Like Zan Partizanne, Francisca and Flamberge have disembodied hands and wear a beret with a bat-like symbol on it. They also have an angelic color scheme on their outfit with black skin. Yet, Francisca and Flamberge's hair remain blue and red respectfully.

"Whoa… what is this?" Flamberge said in astonishment. "Lord Hyness…"

When Flamberge didn't hear a response from her sisters, she turned to them and noticed that they weren't staring at the motionless body. When she followed their gaze, the Blazing General figured out why that is so.

"Oh, it's YOU again!" Flamberge gritted her teeth as she noticed Kirby. "Well, there's nothing else to say but… jamblasted! VUN JAMBLASTED!" She yelled in a fit of rage.

"Ms. Flamberge… please calm down a little." Francisca pleaded, the only sister who remained rationally calm at their enemy's presence. In her surprise, Flamberge heeded her words and took some deep breathes, while still looking upset. Satisfied, the Icy General turned back to Hyness. "Oh, look at you… you're not the same Lord Hyness we once knew…" Francisca sighed sadly. "Oh, but for the glorious old days when you led us towards a bright future." She said quietly to herself but loud enough for the others to hear."

"Hyness really led them to a path of happiness?" Adeleine whispered quietly, enough so that her friends can hear her.

"I wonder what happen to cause him to change." Bandana Dee replied sadly.

"I want to help them. They don't deserve this, poyo…" Kirby said.

"Francisca, Flamberge." Zan finally spoke throughout the conversation. "There's no time for sorrow. It's time now for us to repay our debt to Lord Hyness. But before that… you stubby little pink ball… OH!" Partizanne readied her partisan and pointed it at their one true enemy. "KIRBY! It seems the fated time is here at last!"

Kirby stepped forward. "Wait! Why are we about to fight, poyo?"

"Is that a trick question you dare ask US!?" Flamberge steamed. "Look what you did to Lord Hyness!"

"K-Kirby's right." Ribbon flew to Kirby's side to support her pink friend. "There's no need for us to be fighting over this."

"Hyness is corrupted by the power of the dark hearts. He lashed out at us after it released him from his prison." Adeleine walked to Kirby's side. "We didn't mean to hurt him like that. Kirby wanted to help him."

"Can't we just get along and figure out a way to cure him together so everyone will be happy?" Bandana Dee stepped forward. He motioned his king to say something too, much to his annoyance.

"Revenge isn't something that's worth gettin'. I know this as a fact." King Dedede moodily said, reflecting on the past.

The three sisters looked lost in conflict over their words. The two groups stared at each other silently. It was Zan who broke the unwavering silence.

"Enough of this!" she shouted. "We, the Three Mage-Sisters, will bring battle to an end…" The three sisters floated to the center and brought out their weapons simultaneously.

"ONCE AND FOR ALL!" they shouted simultaneously.

_Repentant Retaliators _– The Three Mage-Sisters

"Uh oh! Here they come, poyo!" Kirby warned. The Crystal Shard gang braced themselves for their next tough fight.

Francisca and Flamberge swiftly moved to both sides of the arena and aimed their weapons at Kirby. The Frozen General lunged first with her cisca axe. Kirby dashed forward and lunge his sword at her to block and clash the attack. The two fighters remained locked in the position.

Flamberge used this opportunity to move in close to Kirby for the strike. Her path was subsequently blocked by Adeleine's Waiu painting.

"Not on my watch!" she said from the top of her painting. She ordered it to throw stars at her but Flamberge blocked a few and jumped away.

The Blazing General huffed at the thought that her attention was diverted from her main prey to the rest of his friends.

Bandana Dee quickly readied three spears and chucked them simultaneously at the Blazing General. Before they would hit, Zan Partizanne flew in front of her sister and knocked the spears away.

The waddle dee pulled out another spear and performed a ground thrust towards her. Zan smirked and flew above the range of the attack before she would get hit. Bandana Dee repeated his earlier strategy of throwing spears at the airborne Bringer of Shock.

After deciding that they were getting nowhere, Kirby and Francisca ended the stalemate and jumped back. While the two were staring each other down, Kirby failed to notice that Flamberge snuck behind him to ready her sword for the strike once again.

"KIRBY!" Ribbon yelled in worry. She flew in out of nowhere, grabbed and flew him out of reach before Flamberge could strike.

"Are you okay?" she asked him while holding him in midair.

"I'm okay, poyo. Thank you, Ribbon." Kirby gratefully stated. Ribbon warmly smiled back and nodded.

"Jamblasted!" Flamberge yelled in anger, her attempt to knock out the puffball slipping away again.

"Hmph." Francisca huffed calmly before making eye contact with Ribbon. The cold menacing eyes drilled into her very soul. "A fairy from Ripple Star would be a nice addition to my collection." Upon hearing that, Ribbon shuddered in fear.

Kirby narrowed his eyes at the Frozen General after hearing the threat. Ribbon set him to the ground and stayed behind him. "Leave her alone, poyo!"

"Oh? I'll make a pink icicle with a cherry on top instead!" Francisca enlarged her labrys and aimed it at them to throw.

Only for her to be knocked off balance by a flying hammer from somewhere. This caused her to lose concentration of the axe and it returned to normal.

"Don't forget about the great King Dedede here!" he boasted as he stepped towards Kirby and Ribbon.

"Show 'em how it's done, Great King!" Bandana Dee cheered, taking his eyes off of Zan for a split second, which is a grave mistake.

Zan dropped from the air to land her partisan on the waddle dee. Thankfully, Adeleine commanded the Waiu painting to throw stars at her to halt the attack and do some damage.

"Hey BanDee, pay attention to the fight!" she reminded.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, Ado." He scratched his head nervously.

"You lucky little…" Zan raised her spear into the air and created thunderclouds, setting herself to do the Lightning Lemonade attack.

Flamberge took the time to create a temporary fire around the arena, limiting their movement so her oldest sister can zap them to oblivion. Francisca decided to float away from the ongoing attacks so she wouldn't get in her sisters' way. These actions also stopped the gang's individual fights and they regrouped in the fiery battlefield.

"Adeleine, do it now!" Ribbon reminded her.

"On it!" she winked. The artist created the Ice Dragon from her canvas and hopped onto the backseat with Ribbon seated on top of her beret.

Kirby raised his sword in the air immediately after she created it. Adeleine fired an ice breath onto the sword and created the Blizzard Sword. With a smirk, Kirby charged a sword spin and doused the surrounding flames with each icy swipe.

Adeleine jumped back to avoid the lightning strikes and then retaliated by firing an ice breath on Zan Partizanne to damage her. Ribbon contributed by firing her crystal shard gun at the General. The combination of attacks made her drop to the ground, the thundercloud above her vanished.

Francisca took Partizanne's place on the battlefield so she could recover. But before she could do anything, King Dedede then ran up to her and whack her with his hammer, knocking her onto the ground in a daze. This, of course, made Flamberge very upset.

"HOW DARE YOU! You leave my dear sister alone, you stubby penguin!" Flamberge yelled and created multiple copies of her sword. She tossed them towards Dedede, forcing him to run around the arena as a trail of flamberges follow him. They eventually surrounded him in a cage-like manner.

"Great King!" Bandana Dee cried out in fear. He noticed the aerial height difference between himself and the Blazing General but that won't stop him. He quickly prepared his waddle copter to fly and then rammed into the general to knock her onto the ground too.

Flamberge skidded on the ground slightly. She looked up and saw Kirby charging at her with his icy sword. The Blazing General blocked a few slashes, but she ended up suffering a few icy cold cuts.

"Grrr…" she grunted and floated back to Zan Partizanne.

Francisca stood up and analyzed the current situation. Their largest and strongest foe on the arena is trapped in a circle of flames by the Scorching Sword Plunge. The two enemies with a blue bandana and red beret watched as the flames slowly died down. On her sister's side, Zan Partizanne watched Francisca intently as she waited for the excess ice on her body to thaw. Flamberge was shivering and tending to the cuts she received from the pink one.

Speaking of the pink one, or Kirby as she learned recently, he was standing in the center and glaring her down with a sword now devoid of frost. The ripple star fairy slowly crept behind him, her eyes still filled with fear after that threat she made to her. Francisca slightly smirked behind her veil at the thought.

"This reminds me of when we first met back on the Jambastion Base…" Franscisa said. "You and your friends stormed your way into my chambers… and defeated me and my sisters. We weren't expecting any alien life on that remote world of Popstar."

"We were chasing those dark hearts that rained over Dreamland that corrupted some of my friends poyo. Following them led us into the base and then into space." Kirby replied.

"…Which, concurrently, led us to the situation we are now in." Francisca finished. "We are tied by the thread of fate. No matter how many times we encounter and clash, fate will pull us together to rinse and repeat. It's almost as if…" The icy general halted mid-sentence, looking sad.

Kirby tilted her head in confusion on why she stopped talking. What was she thinking about?

Any signs of sadness that appeared on Francisca's face were washed away. "I wish not to continue wasting any more time on pointless chatter… so I won't!" Francisca quickly lunged forth with her axe. Kirby and Ribbon were slightly taken back by the change of attitude. Regardless, they split up to dodge the strike but she was unrelenting in her assault. Francisca targeted Kirby and swung her axe repeatedly in various directions. Kirby didn't try to block with his sword, only dodge and anticipate the next swing.

The flames from the various flamberges finally died down. Bandana Dee quickly rushed to King Dedede's aid.

"Great King! Are you okay? Are you hurt? Are you burned anywhere? CAN YOU SPEAK!?"

"Bandana Dee, I'm fine. The flames only trapped me inside... and it did hurt a lot but its nothing." Dedede turned to Adeleine. "Now why didn't you extinguish these flames sooner!?"

"You should know that I can't paint another Ice Dragon right after I disembark it." The artist reminded the king with a slightly angry tone.

"Argh, where's Kirby when you need 'em!? He has the blizzard sword with him, doesn't he?"

"Um, Great King, Kirby removed the blizzard add-on because he is fighting Francisca." Bandana Dee pointed at the duel.

Francisca uppercut her axe and propelled herself in the air. She then did a midair flip and came down for the Cisca Slam. Kirby held his sword above him defensively and clanked with the attack.

"Poyo…" he grunted at the force she emitted.

Francisca didn't back down in this second contest. She will overcome this clash for sure. She must, for Lord Hyness…! Even though, Lord Hyness abuses them. Even though, Lord Hyness thinks very little of them. Even though, Hyness… hates them?

"No… Lord Hyness rescued me in that blizzard and saved my other two sisters from a similar fate. He doesn't hate us…?" Francisca muttered under her breath. Kirby heard the thoughts but he kept to himself.

It's clear that Kirby is the leader of his group of friends he calls the Star Allies but he treats them all like family. Meanwhile Hyness…

Franscica felt a sudden pain jolt to her right side of the body. She looked over and saw crystal pellets being fired at her in the clash from Ribbon.

"Leave Kirby alone!" she yelled as she fired her shard gun.

Francisca ended the clash and elegantly dodged to her two sisters.

"What happened? You could have had him there. The pink pest would have been defeated for sure." Zan Partizanne demanded.

"I… I don't know… Lord Hyness…"

"Did something else happen to Lord Hyness?" Flamberge asked her nicely. The trio turned to the priestess's unconscious body momentarily and looked back at each other."

"No… but it's the way he treats us..."

"Franny, we've been over this before. Lord Hyness saved the three of us and we pledge to always follow him because of that, no matter what happens." Partizanne reminded.

"Yes, I know that. But it's clear that his heart is not in the right place, same as our hearts. Do you remember why we pray the Song of Supplication?" the Frozen General asked.

* * *

The three mage sisters were treading distance in deep space, looking worse to wear. Each of them had a mix of emotions on their faces, namely anger and shock at the outcome of their mission. Planet Popstar slowly became a glimmer of light in the distance.

"Sisters, you must find the remaining Jamba Hearts so Lord Hyness can complete the ritual." Zan suddenly commanded. "I… will address to Lord Hyness about the destruction of Jambastion."

"Are you sure that's a wise idea? You know Lord Hyness will not be very pleased at the news." Francisca warned.

"That doesn't matter. What happened in past, happened in the past. We must look forward to a future that is created from the outcome of our choices." The Lightning General said determinedly.

"Let's first find a place to rest up and tend to our injuries." Flamberge chimed in. "I want to get as far away from that backwater world as possible."

"Yes, I agree. I doubt we'll encounter that stubby pink annoyance and his friends again but I don't want to take any chances of them searching for us, if they somehow survived the Jambastion collapse." Zan grunted angrily.

The sisters continued their space flight until they found a remote 'star' planet. It is the only uncharted planet in the Popstar system so it lacks a proper name. The sisters set up a small camp in the jungle. The Tacs that wandered the area ignored them, seeing that they have nothing precious to them to steal.

Francisca stared off in the direction of Popstar, thinking to herself. Flamberge is lying down by the fire she created. Zan is pacing around, thinking about how to report the news to Hyness. When she saw Francisca staring in the distance, she couldn't help but levitate to her side and strike a conversation.

"What's on your mind, Franny?" Zan asked.

Francisca took a deep sigh before addressing her oldest sister. "It's about Lord Hyness. Particularly, it's the way Lord Hyness has been treating all of us lately."

"Lord Hyness rescued us in our most desperate hour of need." Zan responded instantly, almost feeling anger at her sister. "Because of his act of kindness, we've pledge to follow him until the end of time."

"Yes, I know that Zan." She said. "It's just lately he's been treating us horribly, especially you. And it's been getting worse and worse. He's been diverting from the original path we swore to follow with him."

Zan Partizanne remained silent, contemplating her words. Flamberge stood up from her lying position and silently floated towards the duo.

"The three of us decided to sing the Song of Supplication whenever we can to help mend his heart and maybe our hearts back together." Francisca said.

Zan didn't respond but she was listening to her words well.

_"We may not have another chance to sing the Song of Supplication after we leave this place so.._. Zan… do you truly believe think our hearts can be returned to us and Lord Hyness… from an outside source?" Francisca asked hesitantly.

"I… can only say we leave it up to fate, Franny." Partizanne replied sadly. The Lightning General blinked twice before realizing something. "But are you implying our fate… is with that puffball?"

"What makes you say that!? He and his friends attacked us and forced Zan to destroy Jambastion!" Flamberge argued with a loud tone to her voice. She didn't want to yell at Francsica but she had to make her point clear.

"Yes, the puffball is our adversary but…" the Frozen General paused. The two sisters watched her anxiously. "Seeing him and his friends work together to assault the base and their determination to complete their mission reminded me of our glorious days where we fought for a bright future…"

The two sisters remained silent in thought. But it was Zan who spoke again.

"Fate can make the puffball free our hearts; fate can also allow us to remove the puffball from our lives. The future will show us our next step to take, Francisca." Zan said softly. "Now… let's sing the Song of Supplication and be on our way from this planet."

The two sisters sadly nodded and took their positions in the camp…

* * *

Zan's eyes widened momentarily upon realization and remained silent for a moment. "We'll… talk more about this later… for now…" Zan turned back to the Crystal Shard gang with furious eyes. "We hold nothing back now!" The Bringer of Shock glowed in an electric aura.

"YES! Let's roast these pests!" The Bringer of Flame glowed in a fiery aura.

"…I suppose having these pests as frozen trophies will be delightful for my collection." The Bringer of Icy Doom glowed in an icy aura.

"Be careful poyo! They're gonna come at us with their full strength now poyo!" Kirby warned.

The three mage sisters took the three corners of the battlefield without their signature weapons. Flamberge is the first to act. She brought out her Mega Broiler and lit the match and aimed the weapon at the group (Kirby in particular). Recognizing the situation, the group scattered to avoid the blast that was fired from the Broiler.

King Dedede saw a jolt of lightning flash by his eyes. He immediately jumped high in the air and narrowly avoided the oncoming Electro Éclair attack that was fired in his direction. Having missed her intended target, Zan aimed the attack to Bandana Dee who was about to be caught between the Broiler and the Éclair. Thinking fast, he whipped out his waddle copter and barely soared in the air. However, the lightning zapped his foot as he reached the apex. He felt a lot of pain in his right foot, but he had to tough it out or he'll fall.

The Mega Broiler and Electro Éclair attacks soon ended. It proceeded into Francisca already shaking her Soda Blaster. She then aimed the blaster at the pillars and floating rocks surrounding the battlefield and fired the weapon. The water bounced around the battlefield, some of which hit Kirby and King Dedede for an effective blow. Adeleine quickly drew a Kracko painting and orders it to do a few cycles of the Revolution Beam on the raging Soda pump. To her dismay, the electricity that traveled through the current didn't reach Francisca herself, as it only stopped at her weapon.

"Heh, I figured you try to do that again." Francisca halted her attack. "It won't work on my modified Soda Blaster. Now take this!"

The Frozen General lunged forth with her labrys at Adeleine and Ribbon. They quickly jumped off the Kracko portrait. Upon encountering the Cisca axe, the portrait faded out of existence. Before Adeleine could fall onto the ground, Ribbon grabbed her and flew her around the arena to avoid the Icy General who is trying to slash them down.

Flamberge took position in the center and pointed her sword and Kirby and King Dedede, who were guarding the injured Bandana Dee. The two rivals looked at each other and nodded before proceeding with their assault on the Blazing General. Kirby initiated his Drill Stab but Flamberge saw the attack coming from a mile away. She simply parried the attack and caused Kirby to tumble away from her. King Dedede swung around in place to build up momentum then let it loose with the Hammer Throw.

Flamberge looked on with wide eyes as the attack came in contact with her sword which caused the general to be knocked back. She definitely felt the force behind that attack.

Without a word, Flamberge (and Francisca who was still chasing the nimble fairy with artist in hands) retreated back to Zan Partizanne. The Lightning General had her Drum N' Waste at the ready. Ribbon flew down to the ground and released Adeleine. The artist immediately ran to Bandana Dee's side while Ribbon joined Kirby and King Dedede.

"BanDee!? Are you okay!?" Adeleine asked worriedly, scanning the immobile waddle dee from head to feet.

"No… my foot hurts a lot." He moaned. "It feels so numb and painful from that electric attack.

The artist examined his foot. She wasn't a doctor by any chance but she knows first-aid well. It was one of the reasons why they were successful in their journey for the Crystal Shards.

"Not a problem!" she winked. "I know just what to give you!" Adeleine turned around to ask her friends to watch her back, but they were already doing so.

Zan was firing electrical orbs from her Drum N' Waste. Kirby, King Dedede and Ribbon dodged each orb that was about to hit them. They also destroyed and/or deflected any orbs that were travelling towards the artist and waddle dee.

Smiling at their friend's actions to protect each other, Adeleine brought out her canvas stand and began painting some food and a first aid kit.

Franscisca and Flamberge noticed the two and began flying towards them.

Kirby knew exactly what their intentions were. Before he could move to intercept, he was hit on the side by an electric orb as a consequence of taking his eyes off of the Drum N' Waste.

"Oh no! Kirby!" Ribbon cried.

Despite this, he braved on and continued dodging and deflecting attacks. "Adeleine, they're coming after you poyo!" the puffball warned.

The artist looked over her shoulder and inwardly panicked. She had to fix up Bandana Dee's injuries but she also can't fight the two of them at once. In a quick second, she painted Batamon, Ghost Knight, Octacon and I³ with a few strokes of her paintbrush and directed them to the oncoming Generals of Magic.

The two mages stopped in place momentarily as the artist drawings approached them. Then they slashed through the Batamon and Octacon drawings without a nanosecond of thought. The Ghost Knight and I³ drawings surprised them a bit because they tried to attack them. Unfortunately, they were easily disposed of. Adeleine was just able to wrap cloth around his foot.

"Hey Kirby, how about we inhale these things and spit 'em right back at her. She won't know what hit her!" Dedede grinned, more so at brilliant plan he came up before Kirby could.

"Poyo!? Why didn't we think of that before?" Kirby said in shock. Dedede could only grin even more.

"Because I'm a genius and you know it!" he bragged. This earned sweat drops from Kirby and Ribbon.

"Well, while you guys do that, I'm gonna go help Adeleine." Ribbon said as she turned around and aimed her Crystal Shard gun at the mages.

Zan Partizanne showed no signs of slowing down. She fired another barrage of electric orbs, expecting them to fully hit her targets this time. To her greatest dismay, Kirby and King Dedede inhaled each orb. Once the wave of barrages ended, they both fired all the attacks back in a set pattern at the Lightning General. Now Zan was dodging the attack in the same manner as the trio was doing before.

Francisca and Flamberge readied their weapons on the artist girl and waddle dee. They both stood next to each other and hugged each other in fear. Adeleine's paint supply from her paintbrush is nearly depleted and Bandana Dee can't move fast enough with a cast on his foot. Suddenly, crystal pellets rained on them from behind. The two mages withstood the attack for a second before turning around and deflecting the rest of the shard pellets.

"Y-you leave my friends alone!" Ribbon said triumphantly

"The Ripple Star fairy on her own I see… perfect!" Francisca approached Ribbon with an evil intent in her eye. The cold look haunted Ribbon and she backed away at a slower rate than Francisca approaching her.

Now it's Bandana Dee's turn to help. He picked up his spear and trotted his way to Flamberge who watched her sister intently. Adeleine bore a worried look but she said nothing and let him continue forth to help another friend. Before he could land a sneak attack, Flamberge quickly turned around and stopped the attack. Then she knocked him back into Adeleine's arms at ease.

"Nice try but you can't get me that easy! Now it's MY turn!" Flamberge slowly approached the duo, who were backing up at a slower rate than Flamberge approaching.

Meanwhile, back in the center of the battlefield…

"Arrgh!" Zan Partizanne knocked two of her electrical orbs right back at Kirby and King Dedede. The pair just exhausted their last stored attack but they jumped to the side to avoid it.

Funny enough, the two attacks ended up striking Francisca and Flamberge and did major damage to them, especially Francisca.

Flamberge quickly turned around and stared daggers at her sister. "HEY! WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA! WHOSE TEAM ARE YOU ON!?" she yelled angrily.

Zan looked on with shock. "That was an accident…" She brought her attention back to the inhaling duo in front of her. "No matter, try inhaling this!"

The Lightning General charged up her Drum N' Waste for a few seconds. Kirby and Dedede knew that she was gonna fire a big electrical orb, one that is too big to inhale. Francisca and Flamberge also were ready to dodge if needed, mostly being on edge from the last attack. Ribbon, Adeleine and Bandana Dee moved to the sidelines since they were further away already.

The Lightning General fired a larger orb into the air. Then gravity took place and it began falling. Kirby and Dedede became wide eyed and jumped out of the way as it made impact and created a large explosion. Smoke covered the arena so no one could see who is where. Zan Partizanne sat on the ground to take a breather. Flamberge managed to make her way through the smoke and join her side. Francisca was nowhere to be seen though.

When the smoke cleared, Kirby found himself on the opposite side of the altar from Dedede. Ribbon and Adeleine stayed by Bandana Dee's side.

However, Francisca was directly above King Dedede. With the wave of her cisca axe, she created giant floating icicles out of thin air. Then, with a commanding wave, all the icicles were flung across the battlefield. Everyone braced for impact for a painful attack but it never came. The group then realized that Francisca's Deadly Ice Candy created larger than normal ice walls to seal them off from each other which is exactly the outcome Francisca wanted.

"Good, she split them up. They should be a lot easier to take care of individually." Zan said to herself.

"I'll roast them into burnt marshmallows!" Flamberge declared and flew to Francisca's position.

"Adeleine, can you draw a Kracko picture and fly us out of here?" Ribbon asked the girl.

She sadly shook her head. "I can but I'll run out of paint. I have enough paint to create Kracko or an Ice Dragon OR a Waiu. All the battles we've been through with the others in Another Dimension didn't allow my paintbrush to restore itself for use in a battle this long."

Ribbon couldn't help but pout at the news. It was a childish response sure but how else would she respond if she was told that she couldn't help their isolated friends.

"We'll have to make your last painting count, Ado!" Bandana Dee encouraged.

"Okay, I'll see where Kirby is right now." Ribbon declared, beating her wings vividly to ready to soar in the air.

Before Adeleine and Bandana Dee could respond, Francisca flew into their view with the cold, haunting stare she had earlier.

"Oh, you'll go and see the pink ball alright. You'll be seeing him from the shelf of my greatest trophy case!"

Ribbon's anxiety rose upon seeing the Icy General again. It seems like she personally wants to freeze her because of her rarity as a species. With a nervous gulp, Ribbon readied her Crystal Shard Gun and hoped that everything will work out for them in the end. Having enough, Bandana Dee stood up. He winced as he felt some pain in his foot but enough time has passed to make it more tolerable. Adeleine got the silent message and readied her canvas. She hoped to draw something that will help deal a significant blow to Francisca at the perfect time.

Kirby released his Sword Copy Ability not long after the ice walls were created. He figured that the mage sisters adapted to his sword fighting style, based on how Flamberge easily knocked him away. Using the small pieces of ice, he transformed into Ice Kirby and he barreled through the ice with his Ice Ball. A few wall breaks later, Kirby encounters King Dedede whose luck was not on his side.

Somehow, his feet is frozen stock by the extraneous ice from the Deadly Ice Candy. He furious kept slamming his hammer on the ice, but it wasn't breaking fast enough. Kirby then looked up and saw Flamberge staring at the struggling king. The Blazing General unsheathed her flamberge and pointed it at the unaware Dedede.

"Poyo!" Kirby screamed, catching the attention of both of them.

"Kirby! Help me get me out of here!" Dedede pleaded with his rival.

"Arrrrgh! How did you get here so quickly!" She yelled.

The puffball ignored both statements and blew a cold, icy air at Flamberge. Instantly, she felt the painful cold sensation sweep through here.

"Y-y-you… c-c-c-can't… st-st-stop… me…!" Flamberge tossed her unlit sword at Kirby, He was forced to jump out of the way and stop the attack.

Flamberge immediately warmed up but not to her original temperature. Kirby kept up the pressure by firing more icy breath at her. Not wanting to experience the feeling of cold again, she flew out of the way and elsewhere with Kirby on tow, leaving Dedede by himself.

"That lump really likes to get all the glory to himself." Dedede grumbled as he finally breaks the ice surrounding his feet. "I'll make sure that Dedede saves the day this time!" The king declared as he followed Kirby.

While both sides were in a continuing battle, Zan Partizanne sat on the outskirts in silent thought. The words Franscisa said to her earlier regarding Hyness never left her mind. She silently admits that Francisca and Flamberge are correct about Hyness. He has changed for the worse. Yet... it is her supreme duty to serve and repay Hyness for the rest of her life. In addition, Zan loves his intoxicating charisma and… essentially everything about him.

Despite all this, even she doesn't know why Hyness was desperate in finding out how to use the Jamba Heart to awaken Void Termina. He gibbered the reasoning so quickly that she could only pick up "galactic crisis", "masters of a matter most dark" and "Dark Lord will grant compassion".

But when Hyness accomplishes his goal, then everything will be better for them and him…

* * *

Zan Partizanne and the two other sisters watched Hyness perform the early phases of the Jamba Heart ritual in the Jambandra Base altar. Most of the dark hearts haven't collected yet. The Generals remained silent and speaks only when instructed, as ordered by Hyness, so he could concentrate.

"Zan Par…" Hyness suddenly voiced, slightly startling Zan out of a trance.

"What is it Lord Hyness? Is there something wrong? Please tell me?"

"Zan Par! Jif Majaja Ji Bastion Konjy… Janno."

"A-are you sure?" Zan asked worriedly. She knew how much of a strain this was taking on Hyness's health. She wants him to be healthy and happy.

"Janno, forget it! Let me continue this ritual in peace! Jambuhbye! Jaitty!" he angrily snapped. Under any normal circumstance, Zan would be completely stunned at the action. In this case, Zan simply blinked and sighed in understanding before leaving the altar, with the sisters in tow.

Francisca put a hand to Zan's shoulder reassuringly once they were out of hearing range "You did everything you could do, Zan.". The Lightning General could only sigh.

"I know that Franny. But I still think I could more to help him. We owe him that much."

"Maybe… if Lord Hyness awakens Void Termina then our deity will restore his heart to the way it was before?" Flamberge said, earning small nods from the other two. "Remember, he said something about 'compassion'".

"I... I have no doubt that Void Termina will do that deed for us." Zan said after a moment of thought.

"Then the best thing for us to do is to wait for him to complete the ritual." The Blazing General concluded.

Zan looked towards Francisca. The icy general nodded at her, agreeing with Flamberge.

"Okay then, we'll wait for the ritual to finish. Let's return back to the altar and continue examining Lord Hyness." The two sisters nodded to Zan's command and followed her back.

However, as the ritual days continued, Hyness began to get worse and worse. And it affected the sisters' hearts as well... to the point where Zan Partizanne seemingly ignores Hyness's torture on the three sisters...

* * *

Zan snapped out of her memory thoughts from the grunts of allies and adversaries. Looking up, she noticed that the ice walls are melting considerably quickly because of the vast amount of flaming rocks sitting at the base.

Flamberge attempts to impale Kirby or King Dedede with her BBQ skewer. But the duo is too fast for her. Though each time she stabs the ground, a hunk of flaming rock gets stuck on it like a marshmallow to a stick. The Blazing General catapults the flaming rock to them, but they dodge that attack too. The rock would hit the ice and accelerate the melting process.

"Jamblasted! Hold still pests!" she yelled in frustration.

"_Hold still? I got it __poyo__!_" Kirby blew an ice breath at the general. Since Kirby hasn't retaliated until now, she was caught off guard by the attack. She violently shivered and curled at the ground. Dedede sees the opportunity to finish her off now that she isn't moving around rapidly.

As he ran and readied a Hammer Swing, the king saw Zan charging at him. To avoid this, he jumped super high to avoid the collision. Zan Partizanne kept moving forward with her partisan lance. Kirby saw that she was charging at him, so he stopped his ice breath and used the Ice Ball to maneuver out of the way safely.

The Lightning General charged into the remaining wall of ice and destroyed it instantaneously, revealing the rest of the tattered battlefield once more.

Adeliene, Ribbon, Bandana Dee and Francisca stopped their battle with Francisca and joined Kirby and King Dedede, the former receiving a quick hug from Ribbon. Francisca elegantly moved to join her two sisters.

Now back in this scenario, both sides analyzed the situation. It was clear that both sides were exhausted. The effects of their continuous usage of magic are getting to the Three Sisters, similar to how the stamina and energy of the Crystal Shard gang was low.

Bandana Dee had some cuts over his body, as did Francisca which suggests that they traded various blows on the other side of the ice wall. Ribbon was drooping in the air in exhaustion and Adeleine… still had her canvas at the ready. King Dedede was panting from having to use a lot of his strength, trying to quickly dodge Flamberge as well as knock some of the ice walls down to give himself more space. And Kirby, although somewhat exhausted, could continue on his own for a while, but he didn't want it to come to that outcome. Flamberge's skin look pale, despite the dark colors and Zan Partizanne appeared exhausted.

Both sides knew that the battle was reaching its conclusion… and they want to be triumphant over the other for the same goal they do not realize they share.

Zan Partizanne ended the silent stare down by lunging with her partisan again. Kirby used his Ice Ball to counter the lunge and it clashed with her lance. The brief contact made the ice surrounding Kirby shatter and sent debris everywhere, forcing all nearby to shield their eyes. Once that debacle was over, Zan widely slashed her lance at Kirby who dodged each strike.

Bandana Dee stood up and took a step to Kirby to aide him. But Adeleine grabbed his hand and held it firmly.

"BanDee, you're too injured to help right now." She said firmly.

"I know that but Kirby needs our help." He replied sadly.

"I know BanDee... which is why we're going to help him together!" she winked.

King Dedede had his eyes on the weakened Flamberge. Both Flamberge and Francisca nodded to each other and performed their ground stabbing attacks.

Both moves came from opposite sides of the altar. Dedede noticed that they were trying to divide them up again, so he tossed hammers at the duo. Ribbon also fired her Crystal Shard gun at them and had a better success at hitting them. The shards were messing up their coordination and they had to stop and retreat. The battlefield was "half" divided, mixed with fire and ice.

This situation made Franscica realize something.

"Where's the other two!?" she demanded to herself.

"Up here!" a voice called.

Adeleine was on her last painting of Kracko, with Bandana Dee holding onto her back. With a command she caused it to rain on the fire areas and strike thunder on the icy areas, thereby erasing the work they did.

Bandana Dee jumped off of Kracko and performed his Moon Drop onto Flamberge, even though the crash landing will knock him out too due to his injuries. The Blazing General could only widen her eyes as she was struck and knocked back and out by the attack. However, Bandana Dee crashed landed on the ground. With a wobble, he collapsed on the spot.

"BanDee!?" Adeleine cried out from above.

"Addie, watch out! Ribbon warned.

Adeleine was too slow to react to a giant labrys flying to the Kracko drawing. The painting got destroyed and Adeleine fell to the ground, by Bandana Dee's spot. Despite all that, she stood up perfectly fine and hugged the unconscious waddle dee tightly. "I'm so glad you're okay." Adeleine murmured before walking from the fight to a safe area so they could recover.

"No one hurts my no. 1 assistant and gets away with it!" Dedede roared and super jumped high. Francisca looked confused for a second before realizing that the enraged king was going to land on top of her.

At the last second, she flew back to avoid the encounter, but Dedede merely swung his hammer at her defenseless form and knocked her back quite a bit. As Dedede got closer, Francisca suddenly pulled out her Soda Blaster and blasted it point blank at the king, pushing him back a fair bit to the point where he lost consciousness.

The Soda Blaster caused Kirby and Zan Partizanne to stop their fight and dodge the out-of-control horizontal column of water (soda?). As Kirby dodged the attack, he looked around for a new ability to help as Ice wasn't breaking through the Lightning General's defenses. He saw an unlit flamberge stuck in the ground. He immediately inhaled it and became Sword Kirby once more.

"Nobody hurts my sister and gets away with it!" Francisca counter argued.

Somebody tapped her on the shoulder, gaining her attention and stopping the attack completely. To her complete surprise, it was Ribbon. With a smile, she twirled around and released fairy dust from her wings. Her Fairy Dance move completely knocked out Franscica on the spot before she could contemplate what just happened.

"And nobody hurts Kirby... and my friends and gets away with it!" Ribbon said, humorlessly trying to convey the same energy as when the other two said the similar words.

Zan Partizanne widened her eyes. In a blink of a moment, the fight boiled down to herself and Kirby.

"_All of his friends except that fairy, who is no problem to me, are unable to continue."_ She thought.

"Zan… we shouldn't be fighting like this…" Kirby pleaded.

The Lightning General huffed. "Did you not forget what you did to Lord Hyness earlier?"

The mention of Hyness caused Kirby to turn to his direction. Despite everything that has occurred, the officiant has not stirred from his spot.

"No… I didn't. But the Hyness that fought me and my friends is not the same as when we last met in the Divine Terminus."

"What do you mean…?" Zan narrowed her eyes, but lowered her partisan slightly.

"I mean… that… there's something wrong with Hyness's heart. This corruption is the same as when those Jamba Hearts fell onto Dreamland. Those hearts brought out the darkness in my friends and I had to cure them."

Zan was astonished that her enemy has noticed that Hyness was not well at all. But that won't shift her negative opinion on the puff ball. "So what? You attacked the only one I have ever known to give me love, other than my two younger sisters." The Bringer of Shock raised her partisan again. "Do you understand, puffball!? Hyness gave me… no, us, the Three Mage Sisters, a reason to live! He is the only person I know who accepts and understands me fully!" she shouted.

"I'll accept you poyo." Kirby replied instantly.

"Quit lying!"

"No, I mean it Zan. I'll accept you as my friend but you have to accept me as your friend too poyo." Kirby genuinely smiled. "Right now, you're just turning away another face that can and wants to help you.

Zan's hateful eyes turned into sorrow. Seeing Kirby's expression showed that he really means what he said. And he has proven that he can make friends with anyone, judging by the rest of his unusual party who is not with the puffball at the current moment. A flash of memory occurred to her and she remembers her typical verse of the prayer song:

"_Please return our hearts to us…"_ Zan muttered in a whisper only she could hear. The injured gang watched Lightning General with bated breathes for her next move. Zan slowly gazed at her two unconscious sisters, then at Hyness who is still not moving before closing her eyes and slowly lowering her partisan.

"NO!" the general suddenly yelled in rage, bringing her partisan back into battle ready position. "You be quiet, you stubby pink ball! I will destroy you right here, right now!"

Kirby could only watch on with a sad expression as Zan Paritzanne readied herself for another attack.

"He… he saved my life. He gave my life a meaning, a purpose. I must… follow him… no matter what…" she muttered quietly.

Zan quickly zipped above Kirby, readying her Zan Ztab. Anticipating this, Kirby jumped back and held his sword up as defense for the next attack. His prediction was correct as Zan continued with her barrage of Zan Zkewers, each hitting Sword Kirby's blade.

Mentally thanking Meta Knight for teaching him the Counter sometime before they reentered Another Dimension, Kirby retaliated with a wide slash across Zan's torso, cutting her and knocking her back.

With a hand on the ground to support herself, Zan looked up and saw Kirby high in the air and is in the position of the Hat Thrust. She immediately dodged it and took the to sky, with some effort. There, she brought out her thunder drums to perform the Drum 'N Waste yet again.

Caught off guard by the attack, Kirby wound up getting hit by a few orbs and is sent flying into the corner. Zan continued her barrage onto the location and caused smoke to form around there.

Adeleine, King Dedede and Bandana Dee (the last two are struggling to get up), could only gasp as the smoke expanded. Eventually, Zan stopped her barrage to recharge.

"Kirby… no… it can't be…" Adeleine gasped in shock.

"That pink lump couldn't have…" King Dedede mumbled in surprise

"You can't be defeated here, there's no way…" Bandana Dee said with an incredulity tone.

Even Zan was surprised at how easy he supposedly went down. "Is… is this the ultimate fate of the puffball, who has tied us together again and again?" Zan reflected, her apparent victory is imminent.

"Not quite poyo" a familiar voice echoed, widening the eyes of everyone in the arena who is conscious. They're eyes were glued to the clearing smoke.

Once it finally cleared, Ribbon was seen holding Kirby above the blast zone, but not too high where they would have been seen earlier. How Ribbon snuck in to keep Kirby from experiencing the full onslaught is beyond anyone's guess. Sword Kirby's blade is also glowing in a faint light.

"Kirby wanted you to exhaust your electricity before revealing himself." Ribbon said confidently.

"Now it's my turn poyo!" Kirby performed a wide vertical slash in Zan's direction. This created his Sky Energy Sword beam that hasn't been seen since _Planet Robobot._

Caught off guard by the rarely seen move, Zan took the attack full on and crash onto the ground. However, she was not out yet.

Content on finishing this, Kirby signaled Ribbon to put him down, which she did. He then charged at Zan with his remaining strength left to commit to a Drill Stab.

Zan charged forth as well, intending to use her Zan Zkewers finishing strike on Kirby.

_In spite of all, cold as ice! In spite of all, hard as stone!  
In spite of all, hear our plea! In spite of all, all alone!  
In spite of all, we reconcile! __In spite of all, we pass the trial!__  
In spite of all, hear us three! We beg of thee! We beg of thee!_

The two respective leaders of different groups with different paths approached closer and closer…

_In spite of all, we sing to you!  
Please hear our pleas and help us too!  
In spite of all, sadness rose!  
In spite of all, yearning grows!  
We call to you! We dream of you!  
In spite of all, this all is true!_

King Dedede, Bandana Dee, Adeliene and Ribbon watched without word as the sword and partisan lance were inches from clanking…

_In spite of all, cold as ice! In spite of all, hard as stone!  
In spite of it all, it would seem… in spite of all, we're but a dream  
Hear our plea, you must! You must!  
Please return our hearts to us!  
Please return our hearts to us!  
Please return our hearts to us!_

Kirby and Zan Partizanne stood on opposite sides of the altar, staring into the abyss with their weapons pointed forward. These few seconds of waiting and tension felt like an eternity to the Crystal Shard gang as they couldn't tell who damaged each other in that final clash.

Finally, Zan collapses on the spot while Kirby stutters to the ground but remains conscious.

After a grueling battle, the Three Mage Sisters have been defeated by the hands of Kirby and his friends for the third time in a row.

The Crystal Shard gang slowly smiled at the outcome of the fight. They soon ran to Kirby and essentially dogpiled him on the spot.

"You did it Kirby!" Adeleine cheered.

"Kirby, you're the best!" Ribbon gushed.

"You're amazing! You looked so cool in that pose!" Bandana Dee said with gleams in his eyes

"I'm glad I wasn't in that lightning girl's shoes, that's for sure." King Dedede reminisced to himself.

"Guys I love the compliments and hugs but please let me go. You're all crushing me poyo!" Kirby moaned.

Realizing this, the group slowly releases their hugs with Dedede the first one out of shame of himself. Ribbon was the last and most reluctant to let go. At least until she pecks him on the cheek and flies back with a blush on her face. Kirby's energy returns as his entire face go red. Adeleine playfully raises an eyebrow at Ribbon. The fairy responds by pointing to Bandana Dee right next to her and winks at Adeleine. When the artist caught on, she blushed and stuck playfully stuck her tongue at her. All while Bandana Dee is unaware of their antics.

"Th-thanks for that… Ribbon poyo." Kirby stuttered, causing Ribbon to giggle.

As Kirby stood up and recomposed himself, the Friend Hearts from the four dimensions appeared out of thin air above him. They merged with each other in Kirby's palms to form a grand Friend Heart, surprising each one of them.

"Kirby, what do we do with this?" Ribbon asked.

"Methinks…" the puffball turned to the unconscious sisters. "We use this on them, poyo."

"O-on the sisters who tried to kill us again?" Bandana Dee questioned in shock.

"They tried to kill us because of their love for Hyness. Maybe if I give them a part of our love for each other and everyone else, they'll realize what was missing in their hearts and Hyness will finally come to his senses, poyo." Kirby stated.

The Crystal Shard gang minus Kirby looked towards each other momentarily. Soon, they broke out into a smile once they realized what Kirby meant. Dedede tried to hide his grin but he couldn't.

"If anyone can make a new friend, whether it be a final boss, traitor or loner, it's you Kirby." Bandana Dee said.

"On that day when we defeated 0², I believed that your compassion and love reached out to him in the very end." Ribbon smiled sadly. Kirby frowned slightly at the bitter memories of eradicating 0². But Ribbon could be right at the same time. Surely, the Dark Matter overlord found some sort of happiness at the end.

"Kirby, I still consider you my no. 1 rival, even though it technically has been settled on that faithful day…" King Dedede had flashbacks of his arena fight against Kirby with his New Dedede Hammer. "It almost hurts to say but… yer my friend and I'll always treasure the friendship for as long as we live."

"Aww~" the group cooed. Dedede blushed madly as a result.

"D-Don't speak of this with everyone else or I'll clobbah each one of you to the ground!" Dedede barked. The unfazed group nodded with goofy smiles on their faces.

"Anyways gang…" Kirby announced, catching everyone's attention. "Here we go poyo."

With all his might, Kirby tossed the grand Friend Heart on the sisters. Upon contact, the heart dissipated as usual, but the result was different. The three sisters woke up and regained their color scheme from before Hyness sapped their life force. The astonished sisters looked at each other for answers. When neither of them said anything to each other, they turn to the other closest pink life form in front of them.

"Kirby… did you… heal us...?" Zan asked him genuinely.

Kirby nodded slowly in response, a neutral expression plastered on his face.

…

…

…

"I want to give you my thanks." She replied. "You've… returned our hearts to us."

Kirby widened his eyes in surprise at the voice of gratitude. "I-it's no problem poyo." He scratched his back nervously. "But I could not have done it by myself. I had my friends with me to help poyo."

On cue, the rest of the Crystal Shard gang walked forth silently.

Francisca and Flamberge looked at each other while Zan continued to stare the puffball down. Then the three sisters smiled under their face masks. It was hard to see but Kirby saw it which made him beam back.

"You truly are the epiphany of fate." Francisca said. "Fate brought us together, caused us to fight and eventually caused us to be healed by you and your friends that you call…"

"The Star Allies poyo." He said.

"Yes, them…" Zan mumbled in reply.

"…Do you… want to join poyo…?"

The three sisters looked at each other before looking back. "We'll consider it… but only this once! You got that!" Zan Partizanne smirked upon saying that.

"Okay! We'll welcome you with open arms when the time comes poyo!" Kirby beamed.

"When that time comes, we'll be wild! Just wait and see." Flamberge proclaimed, causing laughter from both sides.

"Now, sisters. Let's use our pure hearts to cleanse this 'Another Dimension' and return home." Francisca and Flamberge nodded to Zan's statement. They turned around and faced the abyss.

They closed their eyes and placed their palms together in prayer. As they prayed, their bodies glowed in a mystical light that soon overtook the entire area. When Kirby and friends opened their eyes, they saw that light is shining down from the sky.

"Whoa…" everyone but the sisters gasped.

"It's a beautiful sight. I'm gonna paint this on my canvas right when we get home." Adeleine said.

"I want to help with that!" Ribbon cheered.

"I bet the finished canvas will look really pretty." Bandana Dee said.

"Oh it will. With Ribbon's help, we're going to put one hundred and ten percent into the amalgamation of Another Dimension!" The artist cheered.

"A-mah-gah what now…?" King Dedede scratched his head.

"A-mal-ga-ma-tion." Ribbon clarified before Adeleine could say, or rather, tease the king. "It means combination. Addie and I are going to combine our sights of this dimension onto one big piece of paper."

"Oh, you should have said so from the start." Dedede grumpily replied.

"She did, Great King. It's just that you… uh…" Bandana Dee gulped.

"I, what?" Dedede leered at his servant.

"You… just missed it…" Bandana Dee gulped.

"You're right! I did miss it." Dedede laughed, much to the giggles of Adeleine, Ribbon and Kirby. The three sisters had amused looks on their faces. Is this what they do every day on their planet?

"Okay gang, let's regroup with everyone else and leave. Our job is complete poyo!" Kirby cheered. Everyone happily nodded before jumping on the Warp Star that Kirby called without anyone noticing.

Kirby looked to the mage sisters and motioned them to come with them. To his surprise, they shook their heads and pointed at Hyness. With an understanding nod, he and the other friends waved at them before flying off into the distance. Flamberge waved at them and Francisca simply watched them disappear. Zan Partizanne closed her eyes and looked to the ground.

The three sisters didn't notice that the Warp Star was surrounded by tiny friend hearts. Once the Warp Star vanished from sight, a tiny friend heart fell onto Hyness's head, healing his wounds and restoring his color.

"Juh!? What has… happened!?" the officiant glanced around aimlessly. It took a few seconds before he became engulfed in hugs by the crying three sisters. "Zan Par!? And Francisca and Flamberge too!? Where are we!? What have I been doing!?"

"You're back… and that's all that matters." Francisca muttered.

"Lord Hyness… I'm so glad you're okay…" Flamberge mumbled.

"You're... majaja bastion konjy. With help, we've cured you." Zan whimpered.

"Oh you... you three are so jawaii…" Hyness lightly chuckled. "Jamanke and japologa vun... for everything. Come, let us return home and create a bright future for us and everyone in the galaxy."

The three sisters wiped their tears and nodded. They allowed Hyness to stand up before setting off.

"Thank you Kirby… thank you for everything…" Zan Partizanne whispered.

**This story came to my head when I was writing the hidden chapters of A Rainbow Tale. Heroes in Another Dimension was something I wanted to explore in writing… and here we are today. There is no connection to the universe I made in A Rainbow Tale, so Kirby speaks coherent sentences for that reason. (I regret not having Kirby speak English in that story but the past is the past.)**

**Even though some plot elements are disorganized and uncharacteristic, I feel really proud of this minor project. It just felt so right when I posted this for the world to see. It was also pretty fun to write the battle scenes on (electronic) paper, with the Song of Supplication and Three Mage Sisters battle theme playing besides me. I tried to make it be based on how the sisters would work together in-game when attacking and I think I did a good job on that. Though it can always be improved...**

**I've been working on this since January 2019. The progress has been off and on but I needed to release this before releasing A.R.T. Hidden Chapter 1. Now that this is released, I can hopefully release that other document on my computer sometime in the future...**


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